


Glass House

by catsandrobbers



Category: D.Gray-man
Genre: so its gonna hurt, that relationship tag is like residually
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-11
Updated: 2019-06-20
Packaged: 2019-09-16 03:39:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16946265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/catsandrobbers/pseuds/catsandrobbers
Summary: When Kanda first arrived at the Black Order headquarters, something in him finally relented to caring about General Tiedoll, just a little.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> edit: I just realized this posted super hard to read, hopefully this fixes it.

When Kanda first arrived at the Black Order headquarters, something in him finally relented to caring about General Tiedoll, just a little. It took him a painfully short amount of time to fully understand the small mercy Tiedoll had granted him, by letting him travel the roads and cities, free of the Order's many eyes – even if it was just for a little while.  


He still refused when Tiedoll tried to hold his clammy hand, as they stood in front of Branch Chiefs office, officially registering Kanda as an Exorcist in his own right. No longer a threat to be under constant watch. Tiedoll settled for patting his head, as Kanda tried to squirm away from his hand.  


“I only ask that you don't swear at him.”  


The conversation between the three of them was almost immediately lost to Kanda, but he was aware that he did swear at that shitty looking, uptight man many, many times.  


“I'll only be here for tonight, and a little while in the morning.” Tiedoll began, once they had stepped outside the office. He was already sketching, seeming to care very little that Kanda had completely ignored his one request. “Would you like if I showed you around?”  


“No.”  


“Oh, Yuu. I'll miss you.”  


“I won't.”  


Tiedoll sighed, not necessarily upset, but certainly tired. “If you give me a few minutes, I'll have you map. I'm not sure where your room will be, but you can mark it yourself, if you need to.”  


“I don't need a map.” Kanda gave Tiedoll a quick, indignant glare that Tiedoll either missed, or deliberately ignored.  


“It's a very big building.” A man in a science uniform, making his way awkwardly around the two of them, brought Tiedoll back to reality. “In the meantime, let's get dinner.” He stopped, to smile at Kanda. “The food here is much better than my cooking.”  


“Good.”

Tiedoll continued working on his map, as he led Kanda down to the cafeteria, unfazed by the few accidents he nearly caused along the way.  


“You can pick whatever you like, there is no fee. Please get me a pea soup.”  


“You can get it yourself.”  


“I'll get us a table.”  


Kanda groused to himself, as he watched Tiedoll mindlessly wander off. He considered also just wandering off, letting Tiedoll stew in losing him again, but Kanda was hungry, and watching the stupid, old man cry was never as satisfying as he wanted it to be. He received a few curious stares as he got in line, and was vaguely aware of a few people trying to speak with him, but he didn't retain much of anything. He got two pea soups, unsure of what to order for himself.  


“Thank you, son.” Tiedoll took a soup, absentmindedly spilling some onto his hand, as Kanda placed the tray down. He wiped the hand on his pants, without really pausing from his work.  


“I'm not your son.” Kanda slipped Mugen off his shoulder, taking the seat across from Tiedoll. It took him one spoonful to decide the soup was disgusting. “I thought you said the food here was good.”  


“I enjoy it.”  


Kanda groaned, pushing the bowl across the table. He supposed it was what he got for trusting Tiedoll's taste in anything.  


“You can get something else, if you don't like it. There's no fee.”  


Kanda pillowed his head on his arms, too exhausted to try and think of something else to eat. He tried to remember how they had gotten from the front gate to the office, and the office to the cafeteria. A folded piece of paper slipped under Kanda's hand, dragging him out of the labyrinth his mind had created out of the Order's hallway's.  


“I've marked my room, and Marie's, on there as well.” With that, Tiedoll finally turned to his untouched food. “Marie is out on a mission right now, but he should be back within four or five days. Think of him as your older brother. Ask him for help, if you need it.”  


“The stupidest shit comes out of your mouth, you know that?”  


The comment seemed to roll right over Tiedoll. “It's been quite a few months since you've seen each other. I'm sure you'll have a lot to talk about.”  


“I doubt it.”  


“He's a good boy, Yuu. Please, don't push him away.”  


“I'll do what I want.”  


“Please, you've been recovering well this past year but, and while I'll always be here, we'll be seeing less of each other now, Yuu. I want to be sure you don't regress, and I think you and Marie having gone through that experience together-”  


“Fuck you.” Kanda interjected, stiffly and full of venom. “You have no idea what I've gone through, and I'm not your son, you crazy old man.” Kanda glazed over Tiedoll's pathetic, defeated face, as he grabbed Mugen and rose to his feet. Tiedoll didn't try to stop him, as he left.  


-  


As Kanda made his way aimlessly through the tower, he quickly began to regret ditching Tiedoll. He had never been here, but every so often he would turn a corner, and something in his chest would rise, and then fall, when Alma wasn't waiting to greet him. Following Tiedoll through places Kanda was sure he had never been, everything had been new and painful - it was almost like Kanda had always been alone. Here, thousands of miles away from where he had started, the walls seemed to echo with the space where Alma wasn't. 

_Kanda stared at the entrance to the Asia Branch, mind hazy. The General had his hand clasped tightly around Kanda's. The Exorcist stood next to him, a nervous energy radiating from him; his injuries healed but he was still scarred. The Crows had come, found Kanda and the Exorcist in the woods – both of them barely alive, but still trying to fight back. There was no secrecy to his existence anymore, as they had pulled him through the main gate, back into the Branch, screaming. He was sure he had killed at least one of them, in the woods, but it did nothing to comfort him. He had never been to this part of the Branch before, but he knew it, he knew Alma wouldn't be here anymore. He was leaving now, no longer alone, still barely alive. The Exorcist, and his General, and Kanda – Yuu was Alma's and so Yuu was gone._

In the early hours of the morning, Kanda found Tiedoll's room on his own. Tiedoll wasn't very hard to sneak up on when he was awake, so Kanda made himself comfortable next to his bed, and quietly looked over the map Tiedoll had left on his beside table. The back included a check list of things Kanda had to get done the next day. When the sky began to lighten, Kanda snuck back out.  


He didn't bother going to say goodbye the next day.


	2. Chapter 2

_The field stretched out and out and out, a sea of green that disappeared off in the distance, unbroken by trees or foliage. The wind rustled through the grass, sweeping up the ends of Kanda's hair. He was wearing the pale yellow shirt and brown pants Tiedoll had bought him when they first set out together, but his skin lacked a sickly grey undertone._  
_Kanda had never really noticed that, before setting foot outside the lab._  
_It was quiet._  
_Kanda felt quiet._

“Kanda?”

The persons tone was edging into a little bit frantic. It jolted Kanda to a state of alertness. Mugen was still in his limp grasp, so his body moved to unsheathe it before he was fully aware of his surroundings. As he jerked upward, his eyes opened just in time to watch his head collide with Maire's chin.

“What do you want, Marie?” Kanda groaned.

“Hi, Kanda.” Marie reoriented himself, shifting to face in Kanda's direction, instead of looking off into the woods. He was cradling his jaw. “General Tiedoll left a message - ”

“You could just call him Tiedoll. It's not like it's even his first name.” Kanda got to his feet, rolling a kink out of his shoulder. They were in the woods outside the Order, opposite the cliff; it was early morning; Kanda had been asleep; Marie had managed to sneak up on him. He scowled. “How did you find me?”

“I've been looking for you for a while.” Maire rose, as well. “General Tiedoll said I should check up on you when I got back. When no one knew where you were, I thought you had wandered off again.” 

“I'm not stupid.” Kanda glared up at Marie, taking a quick jab at his shoulder with Mugens hilt. He wasn't that much older then Kanda but he had almost a foot on him. Kanda couldn't make sense of why, and it drove him nuts. “I'm here now, I'm not gonna go anywhere.”

Marie swatted Mugen off, and made a noise that sounded a lot like disbelief to Kanda. 

“Whatever.” Kanda rolled his eyes, setting off in the direction of the Order. After a few seconds, Marie followed after him at a slower pace, second guessing his footing in the uneven terrain.

“The sun's starting to come up.” Kanda began, when Marie really started dragging his feet. “When did you get back?”

“Close to 2. It's fine, though. My body still isn't really sure when it needs to sleep and when it needs to be awake, so I'm not tired.”

“Good.” Kanda's brain offered nothing else for conversation, so he settled for smacking Mugen against tree trunks, so Marie would keep up. He always complained Kanda moved too quietly.  


“I'm not in these woods very often. I prefer to train inside.” Marie offered, before also lapsing into silence. As they got near the tower, Marie started to speak again. “You seem much more alert.” 

Noel Organon twittered to life briefly, as Kanda chewed the thought over.

“Yeah.” He finally replied, less in agreement, and more to just respond. Kanda's gaze flickered back to Marie. He had gained some weight – looked less like he had been hooked up to machines in a bed for eight months – and his hair was starting to grow out, almost completely covering the scar of the side of his head. “You look better.” Kanda made an audible hop over a tree root. “Are you gonna grow your hair out like Tiedoll's?”

Maire gave a quick, awkward laugh. “I don't think so. I never had that much patience for appearances. Although, it was longer before - …before we met.” 

_“Yuu!” Alma's hands latched onto Yuu's wrist, as he ran up from behind him. But Alma didn't stop his gait forward, and they quickly found themselves skidding across the cold floor._

_“What's wrong with you?!” Yuu made a valiant attempt to break Alma's nose with his heel, which Alma glazed over in his exuberance._

_“So, so, so - !” Alma latched back onto Yuu's hand, as they got to their feet. “I was playing the vents - ”_

_“Why? How??”_

_“And there's someone else here!”_

_“There's a new doctor?” Yuu tried to shake Alma off, unimpressed with his discovery._

_“Noooo.” Alma shook Yuu's arm furiously, in return. “Another boy.”_

_“Someone else woke up?”_

_“I don't think so. He's not awake, for one thing. They have him in a separate room. Like a secret!”_

_“He probably is a secret.” Yuu dragged Alma closer to the wall, as though that would somehow hide them._

_“The weirdest thing is, he's injured, and it's not going away. He's like the doctors. He's from outside!” Alma finished, happily, swinging Yuu's arm around._

The halls were relatively quiet when they got back. Kanda had spent the last few days trying to avoid being found, making almost no use of the room assigned to him, so part of him expected Marie was leading him into an ambush. 

Kanda had already had enough of people's stares and questions. He had quickly become able to differentiate between who knew what he was, and who didn't, based on how they poked and prodded him for information. The ones that didn't were sad to see another child dragged into a war. The ones that did saw some grand feat of science and magic – all the blood that pooled behind him was either ignored, or the means justifying the end result.  
Not that he bothered keeping stock of the lab coats, or any of the many canon fodder.

“Do you want to go get breakfast?” Marie asked, pulling Kanda out of his strange, not quite reminiscing. 

“Sure.”

As they were finishing up breakfast, Marie finally let the other shoe drop, pulling Tiedoll's stupid map out of his pocket. “I was also told to give this to you. It should be a list?” 

“You're a bastard.”

“I could help you?”

Kanda snatched the map from Marie's hand, looking it over. They were seated near the middle of the room, too far from the exits for Kanda to make an easy escape, and Marie had proven before he wasn't afraid to make a scene chasing after him. “I need to a get a coat, where do I go?” Kanda sighed, crumpling the map up in his fist.  


–  


Getting fitted for a uniform was more annoying than Kanda had imagined it would be. People came and went through the room freely, as the tailors shared a space with the records department, for a reason Kanda couldn't fathom, given the size of the building. Every time the seamstress stuck him with a pin, he had to resist the urge to throw a punch, although she seemed entirely unfazed by how he was cursing and gritting his teeth.

Marie spent majority of the time fidgiting on Noel Organon, although he would fall quiet from time to time. Kanda assumed it depended on who was passing through. Why Marie still bothered to tell them apart seemed like a confusing and pointless venture to Kanda. Even if their was some minuet tick of their footsteps to give them away, it seemed much more convenient to feign ignorance.

“What's next?” Marie asked, as the seamstress began to pack up.

Kanda breezed past him, heading for the door. “Doesn't matter.” 

“Kanda, I have no way to even guess what's written down. Could you just tell me?”

“I'm telling you it doesn't matter.” 

As Kanda turned the corner out into the hall, a very tall, heavily armored man almost knocked him straight on his ass.

“Watch where you're going, asshole!” 

The man stopped at that, letting out a low whistle. “You've got a mouth on you.” He turned swiftly walking back towards Kanda. The man looked him over, amused, before catching sight of Marie. “Hey, Marie.”

“HiWinters.” Marie spat out. He looked rooted to the spot.

“This Tiedolls new brat?” The man continued to talk over Kanda. “He's making you babysit?”

“Uh, well - ”

“No.” Kanda cut in. “I'm right here if you have something to say.” His grip on Mugen tightened.

The man considered Kanda's words, before breaking into laughter. “You're funny, kid. I think we're gonna get along.” He ruffled Kanda's hair roughly. “Come find me if you wanna learn how to back up all that shit you're talking.”

It took Kanda's brain a minute to process what had happened. By the time he lunged after the man, Marie had gotten enough of his nerve back to stop him.

“Let me go! If that motherfucker wants to fight, I'll give him a fight!” 

“Don't fight him!” Marie managed to lift Kanda and swing him around, so they were both facing the opposite direction. “Please, don't fight him. He was a solider before he was an Exorcist.”

“That's why you're scared of him??” Kanda stopped for a full second, to stare at Marie incredulously. 

“He's ruthless. It's hard to watch him fight.” 

Kanda made Marie stand in the hall for a few minutes, struggling to hold him down. He finally gave up when he realized people were stopping to stare. 

“Fine! Whatever. He's lucky you were here. Now let me go.” Marie reluctantly loosened his grip on Kanda. Kanda proceeded down the hall in the direction they were facing, without a real goal in mind. Marie stayed put. “Are you in some kind of stupid awe over every General?”

Marie sighed, tiredly. It only took him a few strides to catch up. “Winters isn't a General.”

“Then why does he have so much armor?”

Marie shrugged. “He's in General Nyne's unit. She's the only one who can really keep him in line, and she's gone for at least another month.”

“Why do you bother with all these people?” 

“I live here.” Marie said, like that answered everything. 

They continued, Marie not questioning Kanda's odd twist and turns down adjoining halls, before the arrived at the central ring of the tower. Kanda groaned, as he propped himself up against the railing, unconcerned about the drop. 

“I need to unpack. I have no clue where Tiedoll put my stuff.” Kanda had skipped shamelessly over 'Check in with tutors; Say hello to other Excorcist; Eat again', but it still felt like he had lost. 

“Most likely in his room. It also sounds like you're lying?” Maire motioned for Kanda to follow him.

“Shut up, it's on the list.”  


–  


Getting his stuff really wasn't all that hard, Tiedoll had left it all packed neatly under his bed – along with another list that Kanda had promptly balled up and chucked out a window. Marie took the opportunity to leave when Kanda insisted he could carry his few possessions to his room alone. Left to his own devices, Kanda found himself wandering the halls again.

It didn't take him long to realize he wasn't alone.

“What do you want?” He scanned the hallway behind him, unable to see anything out of place.

“How did you get Marie to be your friend?” A high-pitched voice resounded from above him.

“He's not. I'm in Tiedoll's unit.” Kanda tried to place the voice position, but it echoed too heavily in the empty halls. “What are you?”

“That's rude.” A face appeared from the rafters. It unsettled something in Kanda, how young it was. “I'm Lenalee.” The kid said, as she precariously made her way down from the ceiling. The sound she made when her feet hit the floor was way too loud for something her size. “You're supposed to say your name back.” She made a frustrated noise when he continued to stare silently. “You're really rude. You should tell mister Tiedoll to teach you to be nicer.”

There were too many thoughts running through Kanda's for him to be able to voice any of them. Mostly, he couldn't believe Tui and Edgar were stupid enough to try the same experiment twice. 

“MY NAME IS LENALEE!” 

The shouting gave him something to focus on at least. “You're an Exorcist.”

Lenalee's face dropped suddenly, as her eyes trailed off toward nothing in particular. “They want me to be. I want to go home already.”

“Home?”

Lenalee's gaze locked back onto him, eyes lighting up just as quickly as they had darkened. “How did you get them to let you go outside?”

A sickly pain sunk deep in between Kanda's ribs. “Go away.” He turned on his heel, continuing down the hall.

“I don't want to.” 

“Go away!” He turned, when her heavy footfalls continued after him. Having nothing else on hand, he launched a still sheathed Mugen across the hall at her. She sidestepped it with an almost comical ease. 

“That was dumb.” She said, with no malice behind the words. 

Kanda charged at her, taking a swing. She dodged much more clumsily this time. Finally,she started to retreat, looking shaken. 

“I don't like you!” She scowled, as she made an easy flip back up into the rafters, disappearing into whatever hole in the brickwork she had crawled out of. 

“I'm not sorry.” Kanda whispered entirely to himself, as the room swayed.


	3. Chapter 3

“What are you doing?” Marie asked, from the base of the tree he had been sitting at for the past half-hour. Kanda had planted himself in the branches above him. Marie had gotten bird feed from somewhere. He was accumulating a small horde of birds, that he had been luring closer and closer. 

“Hiding.” Kanda muttered, too tired to really be aggravated. “That stupid girl keeps arguing with me.”

“Lenalee?”

“Are there any other girls here?”

“Yes.”

“Shut up.” Kanda rolled off of the branch, landing hard on both his feet, scaring all the birds away. Marie frowned, but didn’t move. 

Marie shifted, bringing his knees up to chest. He was staring at Kanda, who fidgeted irritably. After about a minute of silence, Marie spoke. “Are you still here?” 

“Yeah. Does it sound like I left?”

“It’s hard to tell. You never moved like a regular person to begin with, and now that you figured out how to climb things, you sort of disappear sometimes.”

“...You’re not even gonna tell me off?”

Marie gave a little shrug. “No, they’ll come back.”

Kanda fidgeted some more before he sat down next Marie, dropping Mugen between them. “How are you sure?”

“Did they eat all the bread?”

“No.”

“They’ll come back.” Marie hesitated before tacking on, “Don’t scare them again.” 

The birds did come back, to Kanda's bewilderment. He tried to ask Marie why they were that dumb, but Marie shushed him enough times to convince him to sit in silence. Kanda pulled at little patch of grass that had managed to crop up between the trees roots. 

“General Tiedoll’s coming back soon.” 

Kanda groaned, turning back to Marie - he had gotten a little bird into his hands while Kanda had been distracted. “Didn’t he just leave?”

“He was supposed to be back months ago.” Marie looked a little in disbelief. “I think they kept him out longer to investigate what happened with Johanna and Winters.”

“Who’s that?”

Marie turned towards Kanda, clearly confused. “She...would practice sword fighting with you? She was a couple of years older than me.”

“Oh.” She was dead, Kanda was sure of that. He was stuck 2-5 forever now. “Winters was with her? Guess being a walking kitchen cabinet is good for something.”

“I think they only just let him out of the hospital.”

“Really?” Kanda had a vivid memory of whipping a stray weight at Winters head, and he was pretty sure that was this morning. 

Marie nudged him. He had been staring off. “How was your last mission?”

“Nobody died. There was a piece of Innocence, we got it.”

Marie was frowning, the bird had gone. “...I thought 5 Finders died?” 

“I don’t know. They don’t count. Why are you asking me about things you already know about?”

“I think it...will be good for you be around dad again. I’m not as much as help to you.”

Kanda caught the slip-up, rolled his eyes, and ignored it, like always. “Mind your own business, Marie.”

The mood grew tense, leaving an uncomfortable weight in Kandas chest. But it was better sitting with Marie than being inside, so he stayed. 

—-

Kanda made it about a third of the way through the base of a smaller tree, before he couldn’t force his blade anymore. He felt the weight in his arms, his breath coming out heavy. He had gotten weaker. 

His own breathing echoed hard through his skull. The ground beneath his feet was becoming unsteady. His arms were bloody, until he blinked and they weren’t. He wasn’t alone anymore either. 

She was talking. He couldn’t hear anything besides his breathing. 

She smiled, as the wounds started to re-open. He was sinking. 

His own raw, angry screaming cut through the haze, as he pulled back his fist. 

The sharp edge of metal met the raw muscle of knuckles - it was a weak punch, easy to counter. Being forced through the air only highlighted how heavy his limbs felt. When he finally made contact with the floor, all that he could focus on was way the light fizzled down from the ceiling. It made him nauseous. Kanda picked himself back up. 

“You done?” Winters stood on the opposite end of the training room; fist lowered, posture loose. He wasn’t even trying. 

“Fuck you.”

“If you’re not gonna take this seriously, I’m gonna call it for the day. I’ll be the one in trouble, if you hurt yourself.” 

“Bastard.” Kanda straightened himself, launching back across the room. Winters countered him in two movements, leaving Kanda on the floor again. 

“I guess I should be grateful you have so much enthusiasm.” Winters grabbed the back of his shirt, putting Kanda back on his feet. “These new kids are either lazy or scared, and that stupid trainer doesn’t want me pushing them. Can’t wait for Nyne to get back, they can’t tell her shit.”

“Who else?” Kanda’s arms and legs were shaking now, as he tried to hold himself steady. 

“Normal people. Not like you and me, brat.”

“You’re not like me.” Kanda clenched and un-clenched his fist. The skin on his knuckles was already healing, but still burned. It hadn't burned before. 

“Sure.” Winters gave Kanda’s hair a hard ruffle, before leaving. Kanda managed enough energy to glower after him. Once Winters was definitively gone, Kanda threw himself back on the floor. His bare arms stuck uncomfortably to the mat, the sensation dragging a chill through him. 

 

_The infirmary bed was warm, leaving him uncomfortably sweaty; their cots in the lab had only ever matched the temperature of their bodies. Different doctors would come from time to time, even though his wounds had long since healed. Tui and Edgar’s Son would pace nervously just outside the entrance at least once a day. It was easier to think of him that way, when he didn’t have to look at him._

 

“Hi.”

Kanda’s head lolled as he followed the direction of the voice. That girl sat scrunched up a few feet away from him. All his brain could focus on was that he had forgotten about Tui & Edgar’s son. He had a bled a lot when that tray had hit him. 

“Ugh.” Kanda day up. He drew his arms around himself. Mugen was propped against the weight rack in the far corner. “What - ”

“Why are you like Winters?” She interjected before he was able to finish his word. 

“Stop spying on me!”

“Why can you go outside?!” 

“Why can’t you?!”

“I don’t know!” Her brows drew together, her frown becoming more pronounced. She sniffed. “I hate it here.”

“Everyone does.” Kanda made a quick shift into a crouch. The air got thin, before she came crashing down in a wide arc. Kanda barely got out of the way. 

She had put herself between him and Mugen. He hadn’t seen her Innocence active before but it encased her legs up to the knee, where it sputtered unsteadily. He had to swallow past a lump in his throat. “What the fuck?”

She was too fast for him to keep up with, but when her leg connected with his shoulder it was barely an attack. Her Innocence had deactivated, so it was easy enough for him to grab her by the ankle and chuck her away. He tried to direct her away from Mugen, but she had enough control to right herself mid-air and bounce back to her starting position. She steadied herself, before she vanished again. 

He moved just a little. 

She looked confused when her foot connected with the ground. Kanda took the opportunity to grab her extended arm, pining her to the floor. 

“You - “ He started, before she flipped them with enough force to crack the floor. “Fuck!” He gave up his grip on her, in order to make a sort of steady landing. She was back in what he had to assume was her idea of a fighting stance, except now with her arms pressed close to her her chest. 

“I want to go outside.” She said, uneasily. 

“I can tell someone’s training you. Why are you bothering me?”

“Because they still won’t let me go outside! I hate being here! It’s been two years, I want to go home.”

Kanda scowled. “What do you mean home?” 

“I mean home!”

“You’re stupid.”

“You’re stupid!” She took another dive at him. He dodged but didn’t bother countering. He watched as she struggled to land, left to correct her own bad form. 

“Why do you wanna go back to the labs?”

She looked at him. “Labs?” 

He squinted at her in confusion. Something was wrong. “With the scientist.”

“Oh!” Her face lit up, as she took a step towards him. “Yeah! Older brother is really smart, he wants to go to a university in a big city!” 

It clicked what was wrong. She had been small before, now she was almost as tall as him. “Have I been here two years?”

“Huh? No,” She managed a truly scathing look, that Kanda could barely register as belated panic coursed through him. “You just got here, and they already let you outside, and Marie talks to you, and Winters is training you.” 

Kanda stared her down, in favor of an actual reply. 

She let out a frustrated little yell before shoving him, to little affect. “Why?!” He grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her down. “Ow!” 

“You’re weak.” Kanda said, through a shaky breath. He blamed the weight in his chest, when he felt her Innocence slam into his legs, knocking him flat on his back. It hurt, in a way that Kanda knew meant it would bruise. “You’re still weak.” 

“Help me.” He could hear here moving, but didn’t care enough to see what she was doing. 

“Help yourself.”

“Nobody ever helped you?” Her foot kicked his leg. The flat bottom of her shoe was unnaturally hard. 

“Those don’t hurt? Why do you wear them all the time?”

“Only Hevlaska can take them off.”

“Who?”

“She lives in the basement. She’s a little scary to look at, but she’s nice.” She appeared over him, her unhappy expression slightly obscured by the shadows from the ceiling. “Not like you.”

“Ok.”

“You shouldn’t be ‘ok’ you’re mean.”

“I don’t care. But I’ll help you.”

“Really?” He nodded, as she gave a small cheer. “Yes! Can we hug?” 

“No.” Kanda sighed, forcing himself back up. “But, what’s your name?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The view counter went up so i feel like I should apologize. This isn’t abandoned, but the updates are probs gonna be not so close together, my bad. :,) I originally wanted to keep this on a schedule but a bunch of life stuff happened all at once. 
> 
> I also properly re-read dgm for the first time in a long time, and realized at most a full year has gone by in canon?? Which doesn’t really mean anything for this story, I’ve been playing jump rope with the timeline from the start ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ but I really thought the cast was in their late teens-early 20s and I didn’t realize how much I wanted a series to bite that bullet until I thought I had it. So, my overall hype for the series has dimmed a little. 
> 
> (I also made a Twitter @catsandrobbers Its mostly just me retweeting anime and d&d related art)


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